Orange County residents whose homes were damaged in Norte Fire describe hurdles after filing insurance claims

Three weeks after the Norte Fire damaged or destroyed seven homes in Orange County, some residents whose homes remain standing say they are facing serious smoke damage and insurance challenges as they try to return home.

Among them is San Juan Capistrano resident Cyndi Dudek, who evacuated her neighborhood as the fast-moving fire approached.

“It was very frightening,” Dudek said.

Dudek had moved into her home in August. Two months later, on October 16, the fire reached her neighborhood. She said conditions deteriorated rapidly as she evacuated.

“From the time I went from my front door just to my car, we were gasping. The smoke was in our face,” she said.

Although homes one block away were destroyed, Dudek's home remained standing. Still, she said the property suffered extensive smoke damage.

“We lost the habitability,” Dudek said.

She said a strong odor remains throughout the home and that ash continues to cover nearly everything inside. Dudek said she is especially concerned because her husband has compromised lungs.

The couple filed a claim with the California FAIR Plan, the state's insurer of last resort.

“When I filed the claim, the woman who answered the phone said to me, Oh your house didn’t burn? Oh, so you don’t really have a lot to worry about like it’s not a big deal. I said to her, excuse me. It’s smoke damage. Complete smoke damage,” Dudek said.

Dudek said she is still waiting for air quality test results from the FAIR Plan. In the meantime, she obtained independent testing that she said found soot, char and ash present throughout her home.

“It’s not just debris from shrubbery and bushes. It’s actually burned housing materials and there’s all sorts of contaminants within that,” said David Melzer, a property claims consultant and public adjuster working with Dudek and other residents.

Melzer said disputes over smoke damage assessments have emerged in the affected neighborhood.

For one home on Via La Mirada, across the street from homes destroyed by the fire, Melzer said his damage estimate reached six figures while the FAIR Plan's estimate was in the five figures.

“You’ve got a home that’s not standing over here versus a home that was impacted by smoke and from my experience, these ones are usually the ones that are just not as straightforward. And I mean, case in point, the Palisades fires that happened last year. I’m up there next week meeting California FAIR Plan again for a claim 18-19 months later,” Melzer said.

Another resident, Scott Peterson, said he remains displaced from his home on Via La Mirada. Peterson, who owns a restoration company, said some homeowners have been told to attempt cleaning their homes at their own expense before claims are reevaluated, without any guarantee of reimbursement.

“I thought I was gonna have it all figured out being in this industry for so long. Like if we just did this and we have the documentation, if we had the testing, it would be moved forward. But there’s never a consistency with the carrier,” Peterson said.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the California FAIR Plan said:

“The California FAIR Plan works diligently to support homeowners impacted by fires. While the FAIR Plan is not intended to, and does not, afford coverage unless there is direct physical loss, which generally means damage resulting in permanent changes to the property, the FAIR Plan evaluates every claim on its own merits and pays all covered claims up to the individual policy limits. This includes claims for smoke damage. We remain committed to supporting our policyholders who have suffered a loss, and to handling each claim with compassion, integrity, and full compliance with all laws relating to property and casualty insurance claims handling.”

As Dudek continues waiting for a decision on her claim, she said she hopes the damage to her home will qualify for coverage so her family can safely return.

“If they want to take care of their people in California, they should obviously be prepared for disasters. That’s what we have year after year is fires,” Dudek said.